Spring Reading, 2016

If Guillebeau’s bestseller The $100 Startup was the guide on how to work for yourself, here’s a manifesto on making work meaningful. Even if your dream isn’t to launch a startup or break a record, that doesn’t mean you’re stuck with a brain-draining, crazy-making job. Born For This is intelligent encouragement toward figuring out what kind of work matches your skills, interests, and lifestyle needs—and gives you fulfillment and a steady paycheck. —Julia

For four hundred years to be Irish in Ireland was a crime. Its people, stubborn to a fault, did not take to fetters gently. Thomas Francis Meagher ached for a free Ireland though he spent most of his life in exile. Just in time for the centennial of the Easter Rising, Egan writes about Meagher with a fervor to match the man’s need for freedom. Meagher’s almost unbelievable life lit a fire in me. I couldn’t put it down. —Ivy

As a journalist for Mother Jones, Mac McCelland traveled the world covering high crisis politics and world events; she was used to seeing scenes that most of us never encounter. But after witnessing the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, McCelland returned home unable to “recover.” Plagued by nightmares, changes in perceptions, and uncontrollable crying, she was diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. In Irritable Hearts, McCelland writes with candor about turning her journalistic eyes inward, struggling to research PTSD even has she is held in its grip. The result is an oh-so-readable memoir that is also a portrayal of human character. —S.M.C.

Eruption chronicles the 1980 explosion of Mt. St. Helens and documents the days, months, and even centuries leading up to it. It is an engaging read about not just volcanoes, but also the American logging industry, environmentalism, and people’s staggering ability to ignore what’s right in front of them. Olson offers up the deeply personal experiences of the people near the volcano when it burst, those who survived, and those who didn’t. —Jade

Fracking, extinctions, pollution, we've put our world through hell, and it's not an understatement to say that it’s in trouble. While efforts are being made to make amends, Wilson proposes an inspiring (and daunting) solution: put aside half the Earth to biosphere conservation. —Rachel

In Smarter Better Faster, bestselling author Charles Duhigg looks at eight important concepts that help explain how some people are so successful. These concepts, backed with findings in neuroscience, psychology and behavior patterns, help the reader identify with each concept in a relatable and manageable way. Learn how to work smarter, faster and better with this quality study in how people do things so well. —Kate

This is a fascinating exploration of FDR’s life and history through the lens of land conservation. We are all so familiar with FDR’s politics and his wartime leadership, that it was refreshing to see a different side to this American icon. Lovingly written and painstakingly researched, Brinkley chronicles how the love of the outdoors was instilled in him, and how that sense of responsibility and stewardship carried him through the rest of his life. —Jax

I’ve recently become fascinated by Russian history, and wondered what it’s like to live under a ruler like Vladimir Putin, a question answered in this book. Garrels spent years doing research in the town of Chelyabinsk, getting to know the town and its residents. Using the town as a lens to show what life is like for everyday Russians, Garrels has created an eye-opening glimpse into another world. —Flannery

This latest work from one of the world’s leading astrophysicists explores the decades-long search for gravitational waves. The interactions of these waves create an eerie symphony among the spheres, and these songs have allowed scientists like Levin to better understand the dynamics of the universe. Levin recounts the fifty-year struggle to detect gravitational waves with a humanness and humor that makes Black Holes and other Love Songs from Outer Space a pleasant read. —Aric

In the midst of a successful academic career, Fechtor experiences a burst aneurysm—and recovers with wit, wisdom, and food. Fechtor’s charming writing drew me in with her anecdotes, like when she met her husband-to-be (“he was totally annoying”), then pulled me back into the raw with her hospital tales. It is “the story of a broken brain—and oh, by the way, there will be recipes.” —Sara